A Christmas Carol
by Cat Steven
Summary: Pearl always loved Christmastime, full of family and fun and gifts. Since Rose isn't there to celebrate as she used to, Pearl has to learn to forget the past and make new memories. Maybe Past, Present, and Future can help assist her...


**PLEASE NOTE: This is very different than the original, so please don't mind! I got inspired by a part I read about…you'll see. This'll be nothing like the movie. However, there is a scene INSPIRED by the movie…drop a review below when you finish reading this chapter!**

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On the night of December 18th, Pearl was sitting at the warm hearth in the Temple's house's living room knitting a sweater. The fire blazed and the timber popped and cackled.

Steven was fast asleep, dozing in his room upstairs, Garnet was making Christmas cookies, and Amethyst was listening to Christmas rock and roll music, volume turned up to Rose knows where in her earbuds.

Everything seemed perfect.

Yet it was not.

Something had been missing for fourteen years.

"You'll have amazing Christmases with Steven. You'll get used to having fun with him by the time he's twelve," Rose said at her last Christmas. "Please believe me when I say that."

How could Pearl have fun when Rose wasn't there to spend time with them? It made no sense. However, it wasn't Greg's fault or Rose's or Steven's. Whose fault was it?

Nobody's.

For fourteen years the Gems had to have Christmas without their loving Rose Quartz. They always seemed happy around Steven but tried not to mope around when he wasn't there.

Pearl did her best to ignore the screeching and bellowing and "singing" coming from Amethyst. She hoped it wouldn't wake up Steven.

"Amethyst, _please_ ," Pearl said in an impatient tone. "I really don't understand why you have to scream like that."

"It's _fun_ ," Amethyst said. "And, anyways, I had to listen to your loud singing before you went to Empire City with Steven and Gregory."

Pearl blushed slightly and sighed.

"That's… _different_ , Amethyst," she grumbled, and went back to knitting. "Anyways, did one of you put up Steven's 'Elf' on the shelf? He wants to see it, and they arrive the week of Christmas, right?"

"I put it up," Garnet called from the kitchen. "I'll move it around regularly." "Thanks, Garnet," Pearl said. "Eyyy, what'djya do? I thought it was my turn to put it up this year," Amethyst pouted. Garnet stayed silent.

"You can place it next year," Pearl said. "It's only in another twelve months, besides, it's not a very big job."

Amethyst rolled her eyes and listened again to her blasting ear cancer rock and roll holiday-themed Christmas music, screeching the lyrics at the top of her lungs.

Steven, tired and confused, suddenly walked down the stairs and entered the room. "What is all that noise?" he asked. "It's hurting my ears."

"It's coming from the neighbors!" Amethyst shouted. "They're so noisy."

"We don't even have neighbors," Steven said. "Anyways, please, turn it down. I can't sleep." He then went back upstairs and flopped on the bed.

Pearl glared at Amethyst.

"What?" Amethyst grumbled, and went back to listening to her Christmas ear bleeding music.

Garnet entered the warm living room. "The cookies are done," she said. "I hope Steven will like them."

"He will," Pearl said.

"WHAT ABOUT ME?" Amethyst shouted. The music was so loud she couldn't even recognize the volume of her own voice, yet she could hear Pearl's and Garnet's.

"You will, too…" Pearl said.

"Much better," Amethyst said.

Why was she complaining about not being mentioned in a conversation when Rose wasn't there? It made no sense, no sense at all.

It was disappointing, to say the least.

Maybe she already handled her emotions.

How lucky.

When Pearl finished knitting her sweater, she admired it. She knitted it mainly for Steven. If she was going to work on the others' sweaters she'd have to knit for them in private.

She pulled out a book and read until morning.

A few hours ago, Steven had woken up. He got dressed and had breakfast. He seemed excited for Christmas – he was in one of his happy, jolly moods.

Pearl wondered what went on in his mind. After all, he'd never met Rose. She wondered what he did when he was home alone. Praying, she hoped that he never went in Rose's room and asked it to build Rose, but she couldn't stop him from doing so.

She had stopped reading recently, and went to her room to knit some sweaters for the others and herself. She knew they all shapeshifted clothing, but it was a nice thought.

"Did you see the elf?" Steven asked Garnet, back in the living room. "I'm going to name him Rupphire G Pearlmethyst Lapidot R." "That's a mouthful," Garnet replied, chuckling. "How about you name him something simple? And yes, the elf is around somewhere."

"Do you have any suggestions?" Steven asked. "Well," Garnet said, "he's your elf, so I can't name him, but for starters, you could name him after something that's special to you."

Steven thought for a moment. "CG Elf Elf?" he suggested. Garnet smiled. "That's perfect." "Ha, I named him similar to MC Bear Bear…" Steven said.

Amethyst finished listening to the twenty-four hour long Christmas playlist of ear bleeding rock and roll music. "Woah, that album was too good," she said. "It busted my earbuds though. No volume's coming out of 'em."

Steven laughed. "Next time turn down the volume!" he said, and sat on the couch next to Garnet.

"The volume was at perfect level," Amethyst said. "I'd say the max limit, but whatevs." She threw down the music player, headed to the cabinet near the couch, and dug for a board game. "Hey, where's Pearl, anyway?"

"She's knitting in her room," Steven said. "Can we play Crying Breakfast Friends board game?" He picked up one of the board games that fell, and Garnet went to join him. Amethyst quickly cleaned the rest on the floor, put them away, and joined Garnet and Steven.

Back in Pearl's room, she finished knitting the sweaters. Yes, her room was full of water, but she stood on a fountain, knitting. It was one of her favorite things to do, especially when she was bored.

After wrapping the gifts, she picked them up, left her room, and put them under the tree in the living room. The rest of the Gems paid no attention. Apparently Garnet was winning the game so far. "Don't be using your future vision," Amethyst grumbled to her, which just made Steven and Garnet and herself burst into hysterical laughter.

"Hey, Pearl, after this game, you can join us. We're playing one more time after this," Steven said to Pearl after he controlled himself. "Thanks, Steven," Pearl said. "I'm going to watch for now." She sat in an empty spot between Steven and Amethyst.

"Oh, you spilled your milk," Amethyst said. "Go back one space." Steven groaned and moved his character one space.

Garnet picked up a card for her turn – if she got the gold kitchen set, she'd win the game! She turned it over and read it carefully. "Gold kitchen set – move six points." She moved her character. "I win."

Then, when Pearl joined the next game, Garnet won. AGAIN. "Unfair!" Amethyst said, throwing the remaining cards in dismay. She had to pick them up, though – it made a big mess after.

"What should we play next?" Steven asked. "I have tons of games. Or, I could invite Connie over and we could do Christmas karaoke."

"KARAOKE, YEAH BOIIIIIIII," Amethyst cheered. Steven chuckled. "Karaoke it is."

Connie was able to come over, and so were Peridot and Lapis Lazuli. Greg didn't want to come, though, because he was working on a surprise Christmas Gift album. He promised to come next time, though.

"Hello, Connie," Lapis said, shaking her hand. "I'm Lapis…we've met indirectly…" "I'm the great and lovable Peridot!" Peridot boomed proudly. "Hello, Connie!" "Hey, you guys," Connie said.

"Well, what song should we do?" Steven asked them. "'Entirely New', 'Entirely New', we need to sing that," Amethyst chanted. "It's not a Christmas song but we must sing it anyway. Garnet? Can we sing it?"

Garnet had a slight blush on her face but nodded anyway. "Go ahead…"

"Or have Ruby and Sapphire duet?" Amethyst pleaded.

"Fine," Garnet said, giving an embarrassed smile. Ruby and Sapphire took her place.

"Where did we go, what did we do? I think we made something, entirely new. And it wasn't quite me, and it wasn't quite you. I think it was someone entirely new," the two gems sang.

As they sang, it spread a lovely feeling throughout the room. Despite Ruby and Sapphire's lovely singing, Pearl still couldn't get over the fact that Rose wasn't there.


End file.
